Self-timing piston electric engine



Sept. 22, 1942.

A. K. HINCHMAN 2,296,554 SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRIC ENGINE Filed Aug. 13, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet l menial"! Sept. 22, 1942- K. HINCHMAN 2,296,554

SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRIC ENGINE Filed Aug; 13, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 P 1942- A. K. HINCHMAN I 2,296,554

SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRIC ENGINE Filed Aug. 13, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Sept. 22, 1942.

A. K. HINCHMAN 2,296,554

SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRiC ENGINE Filed Aug. 13, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 p A. K. HINCHMAN 2,296,554

SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRIC ENGINE Filed Aug. 13, 1940 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 r Patented Sept. 22, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SELF-TIMING PISTON ELECTRIC ENGINE Alva K. Hinchman, Bryn Mawr, Pa. Application August 13, 1940, Serial No. 352,423

4 Claims.

My invention relates to a new and useful selftiming piston electric engine and has for one of its objects to provide an engine of this character wherein the cylinder includes primary and secondary electro-magnetic coils acting upon a piston to cause the latter to reciprocate, said coils being energized at proper periods by relay timers controlled or actuated by the movements of the piston.

The principle of this invention is to have reciprocating pistons or plungers time themselves as they travel within their cylinder walls, independent of one another, and thus be in synchronization at all times with relation to the power stroke, regardless of the number of cylinders used.

A further object of this invention is to provide means intermediate the ends of the cylinders and in the path of travel of the pistons to time the operations of the coils and consequently the reciprocations of said pistons.

A still further object of the present invention is to construct an electric engine wherein each cylinder includes a primary and secondary coil and in which each piston operates relays to connect the circuit of the primary coil and break said circuit into the circuit of secondary coil and also reverse the polarity of the circuits into the following cylinders windings.

With the above and other objects in view this invention consists of the details of construction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth and then designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains may understand how to make and use the same I will describe its construction in detail, referring by numerals to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of an engine constructed in accordance with my invention.

Fig. 2 is a top view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the same.

Fig. 3ais a diagrammatic view of the engine and the electrical circuits.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of the single effect circuit.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the distributor.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of the double effect circuit.

Fig. '7 is a cross sectional view of the distributor with the rotor in one position.

Fig. 8 is a similar view showing the rotor in another position.

In carrying out my invention as herein embodied l6 represents the opposed tubular shells of each cylinder having a division gap or partition ll between them with heads or covers M on the outer or upper and lower ends held in place by the cylinder head bolts 24.

Concentric with and spaced from the shell members it of each cylinder is a non-magnetic tube 25 acting as the cylinder walls.

Within the spaces between the shells l6 and the tube '25, and between the heads !4 and the partition H are located primary and secondary coils and the primary coil of each preceding cylinder, according to timing, is reversed or opposed to that of the succeeding cylinder. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 4, the secondary coil 43 is in the bottom section of the right hand cylinder while the primary coil 44 is in the top section of said right hand cylinder whereas the secondary coil 45 is in the top of the left hand cylinder and the primary coil 46 is in the bottom of said left hand cylinder.

One end of each of the coils is connected to the negative side of a circuit including a source of electric current (not shown) and the other end of each of said coils is connected to a pair of relay timers II in parallel at one end of its cylinder and to one of the relay timers at the center of the cylinder.

As shown in Fig. 4 the secondary coil 43 is connected with one set of contact points 42 on the non-conducting plates 4| of the relays ll mounted on the lower head of the right hand cylinder. These relays are connected with one of the brushes 32 and one of the distributor rotors. Also said coil 43 is connected with one of the relay timers on the partition I! or intermediate the ends of the cylinder and said relay timer is connected to the other of the brushes 3'2 coacting with the same distributor rotor.

The primary coil 44 at the top of the right hand cylinder is similarly connected with the relay timers on the top head of said cylinder which in turn are connected with one of the brushes 32 of the other rotor of the distributor 5 and said coil 43 is also connected with the other central relay timer on the same cylinder and the last mentioned timer is connected with the other brush associated with the last named rotor.

The coils 5 and 46 are similarly connected with 0 the relay timers on the other cylinder and with the rotors of the distributor.

Each distributor rotor includes a contact segment 36 and an insulated segment 31 and are mounted on a collector ring 34 which is mounted on the crank shaft I9 but insulated therefrom respective pistons 21.

by an insulating sleeve or tube 35. A collector ring brush 33 feeds current from the positive side 39 of the circuit to said collector ring 34.

A condenser 40 is shunted around the contact points of each relay timer and the movable portion of each timer is provided with an operating pin and ball 3| in the path of travel of their Each pin and ball slides in a guide sleeve or bushing 30.

The pistons reciprocate in the tubes 25 and are connected by wrist pins 26 with the connecting rods I8 journalled on the crank shaft I 9 mounted in suitable bearings 26 held by retainer bolts 2! to the engine base 22.

In the upper end of each cylinder is slidably mounted a magnetic valve 12 while in the lower end of each is also slidably mounted a magnetic valve I5. These magnetic valves are surrounded by rings 13 and retained in place and urged outwardly by guide studs and their nuts and springs 23.

The magnetic valves I 2 have air vent openings 28 controlled by air valves 9 which are normally urged outwardly and regulated by mechanisms Ii] including springs and thumb screws.

The lower magnetic valves 15 are provided with openings 29 to giveclearance to and permit operation of the connecting rods It.

A double effect principle of electric engine is illustrated in Fig. 6 wherein the only structural difference is the mounting of both a primary and secondary coil in each .section of each cylinder which are connected with the relay timers whereby ;the appropriate coils are energized in proper succession by the movements of the piston during its travel.

The secondary coil d? in the lower part of the righthand cylinder is right hand wound and connected at one end with the negative side 38 of the circuit while its other end is connected to the relay timers at the bottom of the cylinder. The associated primary coil 48 is left hand wound and .has one end connected to the negative side of the :circuit and the other end is connected to one of the intermediate relay timers on the same cylinder.

Similarly the primary .coil 59, which is right hand wound, is located in the top part of the right hand cylinder and one end is connected to the negative side of the circuit while the other end is connected to the other intermediate relay timer :on said right hand cylinder. An associated secondarycoil 58 is left hand Wound and connected :at one end with the negative side of the circuit and itsother end is connected to I thetop relay timers on said right hand cylinder.

:The secondary coil .5! in the upper part of the left hand cylinder is right hand wound and has one endconnected ,to the negative side of the circuit and thecther end is connected to the top relay timers .of said left hand cylinder. The associated primary coil 52 is left hand wound and has one end connected to the negative side of the circuit and the other end to one of the intermediate relay timers on said left hand cylinder.

The other primary coil 53 is located in the lower part of the left hand cylinder. This coil is left hand wound and has one end connected to the negative side of the circuit and the other end .to the other intermediate relay timer on said left hand cylinder. Its associated secondary coil 54 is right hand wound and one end thereof is also connected to thenegative side :of the circuit while the other end is connected to the bottom relay timers of said left hand cylinder.

The operation of the engine described is as follows: In Fig. 3a the piston 27 in the right hand cylinder 16 is about to begin its up stroke, and this piston in this position has forced the push balls and pins 3| outward, thus closing the relays H opposite said piston, and closing the circuit in the proper timing formation. The operation is repeated in the left .hand cylinder, as the piston 27 in said cylinder begins its down stroke, The magnetic valves [2 and [5 work simultaneously as the pistons 21 approach them at the end of their strokes.

The rotor disc contact sections 36 top left and lower right are making connections to their respective brushes 32 that ride or bear on them, 39 is .the positive side of the circuit and is fed to the collector ring brush 33, then to the collector ring 34, to the rotor contact section 36 and then .to the brushes 32 and from here to the relays "II in their proper timing formation by the action of the pistons 21. The diagram, Fig. 3a, shows .a twin engine with the left hand cylinders lower primary coil energized by the piston 12? in said cylinder beginning its upward stroke and pushing the balls and push pins 3| opposite said piston 2'1 outward and closing relays Il operated by said balls and pins attached to them. As said piston 27 moves still further toward the center in its up stroke and said piston passes by the lower or bottom relay balls and pins 3|, this set .of relays opens the circuit to the bottom left cylinder coil and said piston 27 engages the center relay push balls and closes the center relays, but bear in mind the right hand center relay is only energizing the top or upper coil in said cylinder and the center right reiay in this cylinder is dead in its connection on the pistons up stroke and the center left relay becomes .alive on said vpistons return or down stroke .and the center left relay becomes dead or disconnected from the circuit, because the distributor brushes are degrees insulation in this case and may be varied to suit the timing of the relays. The left hand cylinder energizes its coils reverse to the right hand cylinder.

The double effect engine is timed in the same manner except that associated primary and secondary coils are energized at different periods as :will be apparent from the showing-in Fig. 6.

Having described my invention what I claim as new .and useful is:

1. A multicylinder motor including separate coils in each end .of each cylinder, a piston in each cylinder, a crankshaft, means to connect the pistons and crankshaft whereby the latter is rotated by the movements of said pistons, a distributor connected to the crankshaft, relay timers on the cylinders and located at the upper. lower and intermediate parts thereof and electrically connected with the coils and said dis tributor, and means on the timers projecting laterally into the bores of the cylinders in the path of travel of the pistons to actuate said timers.

2. The motor in claim 1 wherein each timer comprises .two supporting members with contacts thereon one of said members being stationary and the other movable, said movable member being urged away from the stationary member by springs.

3. A multicylinder motor including primary and secondary coils in opposite ends of each cylinder, at crankshaft, pistons in the cylinders connected with the crankshaft, a distributor on said crankshaft having a rotor, two distributor brushes for each cylinder, relay timers on the cylinders located in the upper, intermediate and lower parts thereof, the lower coil of each cylinder being electrically connected with the lower timers and an intermediate timer of the same cylinder and the upper coil of each cylinder being electrically connected with the upper timers and another intermediate timer of the same cylinder, each of said timers also electrically connected with the distributor brushes, and means on said relay timers projecting into the path of travel of the pistons to be engaged thereby for closing the relay timers.

4. A multicylinder motor including associated primary and secondary coils in opposite ends of each cylinder, a crankshaft, pistons in the cylinders connected with the crankshaft, a distributor on said crankshaft having a rotor, two distributor brushes for each cylinder, relay timers on the cylinders located at the upper, intermediate and lower parts thereof, one of the lower coils of each cylinder being electrically connected with the lower timers and the other lower coil electrically connected with an intermediate timer of the same cylinder and one of the upper coils of each cylinder being electrically connected with the upper timers and the other upper coil electrically connected with another intermediate timer of the same cylinder, each of said timers also electrically connected with the distributor brushes, and means on said relay timers projecting into the path of travel of the pistons to be engaged thereby for closing the relay timers.

ALVA K. HINCI-IMAN. 

